Snape & Filch (was: Snape, trying ...not to smile? )

[Julie]

No: HPFGUIDX 93800

> potioncat wrote: [snipped]
> Having him [Snape] go to Filch rather than Poppy 
> made his actions look more suspicious....but why did he do it?  

> Pippin responded: [snipped] ...Snape isn't trying to keep his wound 
a secret [snip] he has some reason for not 
> > wishing to be examined by Pomfrey (she'd recognize a vampire, 
> > wouldn't she?), or he wishes to make it appear that he has. 

> Carol: [snipped]...I also agree that the portraits are part of DD's 
spy network. [snip] But I disagree about Snape's reasons for going to 
Filch rather than Madam Pomfrey with his wound. It required less 
explaining, for one thing. He might have wanted to keep his 
suspicions about Quirrell from  the other staff members rather than 
from DD, and he certainly didn't want any students to know....
Better to receive treatment from Filch than risk being seen.

(me) Snape hasn't just been bitten when Harry sees the wound.  I 
think Snape let Filch assist him with the bandages 
because Madame Pomfrey wasn't supposed to know about Fluffy.  Filch, 
as the caretaker who presumably has the run of the castle, was 
probably allowed to know -- at least that a large dangerous 
animal was guarding "the third floor corridor on the right hand 
side."  Could you imagine the consequences of Mrs. Norris wandering 
down the corridor?  

Also, besides Poppy being excluded from the secret, perhaps an visit 
to the infirmery is magically logged on some report?  Very bad for 
keeping secrets, much less any encounters with inquisitive students.

Harry assumes that Snape was bitten "at Halloween" but the book 
merely says that they "entered November" before Snape 
confiscated "Quiddith Through the Ages" on a friday afternoon before 
Harry's first Quidditch game (which is the next day, Saturday).  Its 
difficult to figure out how many days passed between Quirrel's 
Halloween Troll distraction and Harry's discovery of Snape's shredded 
leg.  But the narrative does seem to mention some passage of time so 
it seems that Snape might have taken a couple of days to decide he'd 
better check that the safeguards around the stone were still in place.
Harry only notices him limping that afternoon, so he wasn't just 
bitten when Harry sees him with Filch.

I theorize that a Friday evening before the first big quidditch match 
was probably a pretty quiet time for using the staff room, perhaps 
Snape had helped himself to some more bandages quietly and then run 
into Filch near the staff room and decided to enlist his help. Snape 
seems comfortable discussing Fluffy with Filch, "How are you supposed 
to keep your eyes on all three heads at once?"  sounds like a 
complaint you'd make to someone who's also dealt with Fluffy and 
understands the problem.

Inky/Julie